‘Hemp and Marijuana are both pots?’ Young consumer awareness and perception of hemp food in India

Purpose: The present study assesses consumer awareness and readiness to pay for Hemp-based food products. Hemp-based food products can help maintain insulin levels and anxiety, improve cardiac function, and thus, the potentiality to increase market growth. On the other hand, people have a perception of feeling high with the consumption of Hemp due to the genesis of the same cannabis family. Therefore, there is a need to assess consumer knowledge regarding Hemp and Marijuana differentiation and, further, the willingness to incorporate Hemp into food. Methodology: The study is based on a structured questionnaire consisting of dichotomous, multiple choice, and Likert scale-based questionnaires collected from 472 respondents from the Delhi-NCR. Various statistical methods like descriptive statistics and exploratory factor analysis were applied to get inferences from the data. Findings: Respondents having experience in food science and allied branches are more aware of the differentiation between hemp and marijuana. Further, respondents are willing to accept hemp-based staple food, snacks, and fast foods; however, health is one of the prominent factors for purchasing hemp-based food products. Originality: The study is unique because no other consumer perception-based study could be found to our knowledge regarding hemp-based food products in the Indian market. This study will help new start-ups and organizations to understand consumer interests concerning hemp-based food products and the hemp market and create awareness amongst the people about hemp products and their nutritional benefits.